Author: NBTC

The news got buried in part due to Trump’s inauguration and subsequent rumblings of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR), but developer b10c recently published research showing that F2Pool — a mining pool representing ~11% of hash power on the Bitcoin network — is censoring OFAC-sanctioned transactions… again. In case you don’t know what this means: the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) maintains a list of sanctioned entities, including a number of Bitcoin addresses; it’s illegal to do business with these entities under US law. It’s actually unclear if this means miners cannot include transactions…

The AI field is changing rapidly, with projects like DeepSeek and MyShell pushing limits. MyShell has swiftly integrated DeepSeek R1, an open-source, cost-effective language model, within four hours, showing its commitment to innovation. Notably, YZi Labs has a substantial shae in the MyShell project. DeepSeek R1 introduces advanced reasoning capabilities at a fraction of traditional costs, using novel training methods and efficient architecture. As a result, it empowers businesses and researchers to leverage powerful AI without needing extensive resources. DeepSeek V3 further elevates this initiative by enabling decentralized, collaborative AI training with strong privacy measures. Good to see BNB Chain…

The Total Value Locked on Avalanche blockchain passed $1.74 billion, marking a major network advancement. The industry momentum of decentralized finance (DeFi) further verifies the Avalanche network’s expanding authority. TOP 10 #TVL ON #AVALANCHE $AAVE $QI $JOE $GMX #BUIDL $GGP $PHAR $YAK #FranklinTempleton $NOTE pic.twitter.com/UpaaJqmOzT — PHOENIX – Crypto News & Analytics (@pnxgrp) January 29, 2025 Total Value Locked (TVL) represents a crucial metric which demonstrates both DeFi sector growth and adoption levels. The various blockchain ecosystems see several projects, including lending protocols. Decentralized exchanges, derivatives platforms, RWA, and tokenization platforms are drawing billions in investment. Lending Giants: AAVE and…

Closely followed crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen says that one last correction could trigger an Ethereum (ETH) run to new all-time highs in the near future. In a new strategy session, Cowen points out a correlation between the Bank of Japan raising interest rates and ETH capitulation wicks the following month, potentially reacting to macro signals coming from the BOJ. Cowen notes that after nearly eight years of keeping interest rates flat, the BOJ raised them in March and July of 2024 and then again this month. Since the first two rate hikes preceded volatile Ethereum corrections in April and August,…

Shiba Inu and Astra Nova have announced a partnership that aims to revolutionize the Web3 space by combining artificial intelligence (AI), gaming, and community-driven projects. The collaboration combines the strengths of both projects. While Shiba Inu will showcase its expertise in community engagement and decentralization, Astra Nova will showcase its skills in Web3 integration and AI storytelling. As part of the partnership, Shiba Inu and Astra Nova will leverage their collective strengths to support community-driven initiatives while exploring the possibilities of Web3. The partnership will also explore multiple avenues for potential collaboration, particularly those related to AI and blockchain. As…

Kucoin pleads guilty to U.S. unlicensed money transmitter charges. Kucoin founders sign deferred prosecution agreement with Justice Department Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin has pleaded guilty to criminal charges in the United States for operating an unlicensed money transfer business and agreed to pay nearly $300 million in fines and forfeitures, according to a report by Bloomberg. The plea was made today in a New York court, where U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter imposed a fine of approximately $113 million and forfeiture of $184.5 million. The case also involved Kraken’s operations under Peken Global Ltd. The Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted KuCoin…

At some point, every cryptocurrency needs to go through major changes that shake up the way it works. That’s where hard forks and soft forks come in. These are updates to the protocol that make significant adjustments to how the system operates. In this article, we’ll break down what hard fork and soft fork in blockchain are, why they’re necessary, and, most importantly, how they’re different from each other. Table of Contents What is a hard fork in blockchain? What is a soft fork in blockchain? Hard fork vs. soft fork in blockchain: key difference Why do forks happen in…

Michael Saylor, the founder and executive chairman of MicroStrategy business intelligence firm that has switched to Bitcoin, has taken to his official account on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) to address MSTR holders regarding the recently earned weekly gains. MicroStrategy has prepared big Bitcoin yield to holders The founder of MicroStrategy has announced that over the last week, the company treasury operations brought a weekly Bitcoin gain of 1,440 BTC to MSTR holders. Saylor clarified that it is 0.32% yield versus the 447,470 Bitcoins held by the company now. At the current Bitcoin price of roughly…

An analyst known for making timely crypto calls believes that Ethereum (ETH) is at a pivotal point as it hovers close to $3,000. Pseudonymous trader Credible tells his 459,900 followers on the social media platform X that Ethereum may be in the midst of carving a local bottom before igniting fresh rallies. According to the analyst, Ethereum bulls should hold ETH’s immediate support at around $3,000 otherwise the leading smart contract protocol could plunge to below $2,800. “Here we are. The first of two levels that I believe will mark our bottom on ETH. Moment of truth here, let’s see…

In a recent response on X, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong highlighted an unexpected surge in Solana activity. Armstrong noted that Coinbase’s Solana infrastructure was under significant pressure, stating that the Coinbase team had been working hard to scale the infrastructure in response to the unexpected surge. “Team is working hard on scaling our Solana infra now – lots of Solana activity last few days, we were not anticipating this level of surge,” the Coinbase CEO wrote. This activity surge most likely began on Friday and extended through the weekend, as meme tokens issued on the Solana blockchain sparked a market…